Rules of the Strange: I Became a God in a Bizarre World Through Taoist Arts

When someone in the live chat realized that the question about ghost stories might be a multiple-choice question, all the comments surged towards the screen like a tidal wave.

Countless comments scrolled rapidly, and speculation about the answer intensified.

Do you think they can answer correctly?

The sound of a ghost story echoed in Shen Xingzhuo's mind.

She paused for a moment, realizing that this was a ghost story intersecting with her private conversation.

"Of course."

[Based on their newly awakened intelligence?]

While talking to her in the ghost story, Shen Xingzhuo saw the intense barrage of comments from the Tianxia Kingdom appear before her eyes.

As she watched the answers fly by, she curled the corners of her lips into a smile.

"Their analyses are all reasonable, and I believe they are the correct answer."

Why aren't you afraid? Your life is in the hands of millions; the slightest mistake could cost you your life. Aren't you afraid of death?

Ghost stories deliberately exaggerate the nature of events.

"If that's the case... then I have a question for you in return."

"You adjust a nation's fortune based on whether the chosen one can successfully complete the supernatural tale's storyline. What exactly does this fortune value mean to you?"

After asking the question, without waiting for the ghost who wrote the ghost story, she answered on her own:

"I'm afraid it's nothing at all."

"The nation's fortune value is nothing more than a life value that allows you to manipulate everyone else."

"But in reality, in the eyes of our Xuanmen sect, the fate of the nation is a quantified result of the resonance of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity."

"Favorable timing provides the momentum, advantageous location is the foundation, and harmonious relationships unite the hearts and minds."

"Therefore, when the three elements (heaven, earth, and man) are in harmony, the nation's fortunes will prosper."

Shen Xingzhuo paused, his gaze calmly piercing through the void, as if he could see the "eyes" of the ghost story.

The comments were still scrolling, and the answers with "D" kept coming in like a tide, one wave after another, without stopping.

Shen Xingzhuo looked at those names, those accounts, those people who had never met her but had entrusted their lives to her.

A thought suddenly occurred to her: she wasn't alone in the ghost stories. They were all there. She was inside, and they were outside. Their directions were different, but the path they walked was the same.

She withdrew her gaze, lowered her eyelashes, and the curve of her lips faded slightly, yet deepened a little more than before.

"The fate of a nation is not a number. The fate of a nation is—when you are fighting desperately inside, there are people outside who believe in you."

"You ask me if I'm afraid of death. Of course I am. But I know the citizens of Tianxia Kingdom won't let me die."

"It's not because they're smart, it's because they trust me. And trust is the foundation of 'harmony among people' in the Three Powers (heaven, earth, and man). When people are united and their hearts are at peace, the nation's destiny will not fall apart."

"You're betting my life on their judgment—but you don't know that they're not betting on the answer. They're betting on whether they believe me."

"They believe in me. So I won't lose."

The ghost story remained silent for a long time.

"...What you said is more interesting than I expected."

Shen Xingzhu smiled slightly: "Take your time. I'm not in a hurry."

The comments continued scrolling, the dense "D"s surging in wave after wave without stopping. Shen Xingzhuo looked at those names, those accounts, those people she had never met yet who had staked their lives on her. A thought suddenly occurred to her: she wasn't alone in the ghost stories. They were all there. It's just that she was inside, and they were outside. Their directions were different, but the path they walked was the same.

She suddenly remembered something her master had said long ago. Back then, she was young, practicing with her master in a remote mountain temple. One night, she asked her master, "Master, if we trust someone, aren't we afraid of trusting the wrong person?"

The master was brewing tea, not even looking up: "Afraid. But which will you regret more, believing the wrong person or not believing at all?"